Last week’s screening of Tassos Boulmetis’ Touch of Spice/Πολιτική Κουζίνα (2006) as well as Dimitris Eleftheriotis’ chapter “A Touch of Spice: Mobility and Popularity” greatly resonated with me due to my Greek heritage. In one of the opening scenes, the long take across the landscape immediately struck me due to the mix of Greek Orthodox and Muslim imagery. The loss of Hagia Sophia remains a sore topic, especially with its recent conversion into a mosque. To have this church/mosque as one of the first images that introduces the audience to Fanis’ childhood environment is a great use of symbolism that encapsulates the tensions between Turkey and Greece. While the religious themes are not overly emphasized, they remain a main cause for the film’s efficacy and success. Following the Greek genocide during World War I, in which Greek Orthodox civilians were either murdered or forced to flee Asia Minor by the Ottoman Empire, religion evidently emerged as a significant source of pride. This sentiment is sprinkled throughout the movie, especially in the scene where Fanis’ father cries about the five seconds he spent contemplating converting to islam in order to stay in Constantinople/Istanbul. We truly see the importance of religion in Greek identity due to the father’s expressed immense guilt. In one of the later scenes, the moment in the church when Fanis helps the old man light a candle reinforces this theme. Throughout my life, I never fully recognized or appreciated the importance of religion to my own heritage. Seeing this full-circle moment onscreen struck an emotional chord, bringing a newfound appreciation for all those times I dreaded going to church for hours on end with my grandparents.
While religion is a sensitive topic to explore, Boulmetis does so in a way that does not feel overly nationalistic, as argued by Eleftheriotis. There is a great amount of care put into the execution of these themes. Turkey is never villainized and there is a strong feeling of acceptance and understanding between the two countries by the end of the movie. Eleftheriotis explains that this film also aided with Greek-Turkish reconciliation. Overall, Πολιτική Κουζίνα is the first time that I have felt any sort of cultural recognition onscreen. Seeing such a film in an American context has really proved Dimitris Eleftheriotis’ point that the director brought Greek cinema to the twenty-first century.
Stevie Paraskevopoulos, Photograph of the Greek flag at the Acropolis in Athens, Greece.
Works Cited
Eleftheriotis, Dimitris. “A Touch of Spice: Mobility and Popularity.” Greek Cinema: Texts, Histories, Identities, Intellect, Bristol, 2012, pp. 17–36.